1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a hinge and, more particularly, to a hinge mounted between a door and a cabinet body of a piece of furniture to provide a buffering function avoiding the door from impacting the cabinet and to allow easy assembly and detachment of the door.
2. Description of the Related Art
A type of hinge includes a fixed seat fixed to a door of a piece of furniture. A connecting frame is fixed to a cabinet body of the furniture. A buffer unit is mounted between the fixed seat and the connecting frame via a connecting device. When the door is being closed, the buffer unit provides a buffering effect to reduce the speed the door is being closed, avoiding the cabinet from being damaged by the door when the door is closed at a high speed. The buffer unit includes a buffer, a swivel member, and a plurality of swaying plates. The buffer and the swivel member are pivotably mounted onto the connecting frame. The buffer is pivotably connected to the swaying plates via the swivel member thereby allowing the swivel member to move in a reciprocating manner. Each swaying plate is pivotably connected to a plurality of connecting plates of the connecting device. The connecting plates are overlapped and pivotably mounted between the fixed seat and the connecting frame. Two of the connecting plates include lugs with pivot holes for pivotal connection with the swaying plates. An example of such a hinge is disclosed in Taiwan Utility Model No. M307673. However, the pivotal angle of the buffer is relatively large during opening or closing of the door, such that a large space must be provided between the connecting frame and the fixed seat to avoid interference between the elements of the buffer unit, preventing a bulky device from being required. Furthermore, the hinge includes a number of components and requires troublesome assembly of the overlapped connecting plates in sequence. Further, since there are four pivotal connections between the buffer, the swivel member, the swaying plates, and the connecting plates and since each swaying plate is a free member having its own rotational and translational movement, the movements of the pivotal connections may interfere with each other, leading to non-smooth closing or opening of the door.